Zulu numbers for object identification and enhancement

ABSTRACT

A zulu number, discerned from a QR code, is received from a client. A database is accessed to retrieve enhanced information associated with the zulu number and store information from the client. The enhanced information is sent to the client for display or execution.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 USC 119(e) to U.S. App. No.61/466,247, by Chris Zuleeg, filed on Mar. 22, 2011, entitled ZULUNUMBERS FOR OBJECT IDENTIFICATION AND ENHANCEMENT, and to U.S. App. No.61/468,500, by Chris Zuleeg, filed on Mar. 28, 2011, entitledTRANSPORTING OBJECTS USING ZULU SPICE, the entire contents of each beinghereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to object identification,and more specifically, to using ZuluNumbers to identify and enhanceobjects.

2. Prior Art

Objects can be physical or virtual. Physical objects include commercialproducts, warehouse inventory, personal items, and the like. Virtualobjects include magazine advertisements, online objects, events,experiences, and more.

Currently, objects are identified by, for example, bar codes, serialnumbers, and descriptions. However, bar codes typically identify a typeof object rather than a specific instance of an object. Although serialnumbers identify a specific object, the text characters are notinherently available for machine reading or scanning. Furthermore, thereis no universal format for bar codes and serial numbers across varioustypes of objects. Moreover, descriptions of objects are static andcannot be updated on objects such as magazine advertisements that havealready been published and distributed.

Additionally, many objects are generic, especially when mass produced.Consequentially, it is not possible to tailor information about anobject for a particular person or context. Nor can the information beupdated based on information that becomes available after distributionof an object.

What is needed is to uniquely identify disparate objects with auniversal format. Further, information associated with objects should bedynamic and/or customizable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

In the following drawings like reference numbers are used to refer tolike elements. Although the following figures depict various examples ofthe invention, the invention is not limited to the examples depicted inthe figures.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating system for object identificationand enhancement according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method for object identificationand enhancement according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating system for routing for acooperative transfer of physical objects over a network, according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a flow chart illustrating a method for routing for acooperative transfer of physical objects over the network, according toan embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Part I

The above-mentioned needs are met by a method, system and computerprogram product for object identification and enhancement. The followingdetailed description is intended to provide example implementations toone of ordinary skill in the art, and is not intended to limit theinvention to the explicit disclosure, as one or ordinary skill in theart will understand that variations can be substituted that are withinthe scope of the invention as described.

Objects can be physical or virtual. Physical objects include, forexample, commercial products, warehouse inventory, personal items,trees, pets, real estate, automobiles, mail, and the like. Virtualobjects include, for example, magazine advertisements, online objects,events, experiences, dates, emotions, and the like. An object can beidentified using a unique ZuluNumber.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system 100 forobject identification and enhancement, according to one embodiment. Thesystem 100 can implement embodiments described in detail below.

One or more ZuluNumbers can be embedded in a QR (Quick Response) Code110 as shown, or in an alternative machine-readable format. A computingdevice 120 can be a smart phone or other mobile or stationary processingdevice, capable of reading the QR Code 110. A Zulu server 130 can be anetwork-based server in communication over a network (e.g., data orcellular network) with the computing device 120. A Zulu database 140 isaccessible by the Zulu server 130 either locally or remote. In oneembodiment, the Zulu database 140 stores information associated with aset of QR Codes including QR Code 110. The stored information can beindexed according to a ZuluNumber and be associated with data,multimedia, documents, URLs, source code, commands, or any other type ofinformation described in the implementations below. In one embodiment,the stored information is preloaded into the Zulu database 140. Inanother embodiment, the stored information is stored by the computingdevice 120.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method 200 for objectidentification and enhancement, according to one embodiment. The method200 can be implemented in, for example, the Zulu server 130 of FIG. 1.

At step 210, a ZuluNumber is received from a client and discerned from,for example, a QR Code. At step 220, a database is accessed to retrieveenhanced information associated with the ZuluNumber, as described inmore detail below. At step 230, the enhanced information is sent to theclient for display to a user. In some embodiments, data from the clientis stored in a database in association with the ZuluNumber. In anotherembodiment, the enhanced information is executed (e.g., an application).

In one example, a user can scan a QR Code with a smart phone at theentrance of a house for sale. A ZuluNumber associated with the propertyis embedded in the QR Code. In response, audio for a guided tour canautomatically start to play. Additionally, a browser window canautomatically display price and other parameters.

Several more detailed applications of ZuluNumbers are presented below.In some embodiments, these applications can be implemented using thegeneral architecture described above. In other embodiments, thearchitecture can be varied as needed.

ZuluNumbers

In one embodiment, ZuluNumbers are unique identifiers that can identifyeverything—all the people, places and things on the planet. ZuluNumbersare an extension of UPC or ISBN bar codes, but what makes them inventiveis that they identify specific objects rather that groups of products.Additionally, while UPC or ISBN barcodes are static, ZuluNumbers aredynamic and can have associated actions. In one example, they are 16characters of the format ZabcDEF1234567890 where each character (otherthan the preceding identifying “Z”) is a base 62 digit comprised ofalpha a-z, A-Z and numeric 0-9. 16 characters of base 62 can identify4.77×10̂28 unique items, or about 6.81×10̂18 ZuluNumbers for every personon Earth. Other embodiments of ZuluNumbers could be more or less than 16characters, or include other characters than a-z, A-Z and 0-9. What ispractical about 16 characters a-z, A-Z and 0-9 is that it is long enoughto specify many unique objects, short enough to remember or to type inmanually, if required, and are also able to be typed into an ordinary(non-keyboard) cell phone. ZuluNumbers are a simple and fundamentalunderlying technology. Following are some characteristics of ZuluNumbersand some examples of their practical application.

ZuluNumber Characteristics

ZuluNumbers are globally unique strings, e.g. Z3hG5F6 kd9fj53b3g, whichare stored in the ZuluNumber database. Each ZuluNumber has an owner andonly the owner can modify the data or specify the Access Privileges tothat data, e.g. to the Public, Private, or to Friends and Family, or tospecify the purpose, application or disposition of that ZuluNumber orits data. For instance, the owner might specify a ZuluNumber to be aVoice Annotation ZuluNumber to the Public, contain private data onlyavailable to the owner, and share a subset of that data with theirFriends and Family. ZuluNumber data would have specific static fieldsshared across all ZuluNumbers (e.g. owned vs. available, voice vs. data,weight, height, length, width, value, color, cost, location), but otherdata would be stored in XML to dynamically allow new fields to becreated and stored. ZuluNumbers can be identified by QR_Code to storemore dense information and to provide error correction. However,fundamentally, the ZuluNumber service guarantees that the requestor ofthe ZuluNumber information will be provided that information by whatevermethod possible, whether through smart phone, telephone, web page, postcard, or even in person. ZuluNumbers can be easily read with your cameraenabled smart phone. GoogleGoogles or simple Barcode reading apps allowyou to read in the ZuluNumber, which takes you directly to theZuluNumber website where the publicly available data will be retrievedfrom the ZuluNumber database and be acted upon, e.g. either displayed orthe voice annotation be played. When accessed anonymously with just aQR_Code reader, your IP address, smart phone's MAC address, yourinferred location and time would all be stored with the ZuluNumberitself in a transaction log. A ZuluNumber App would include youridentity and could also allow you to further tailor your experience, forinstance to create a log of all the ZuluNumbers you have scanned, or toturn off Voice Annotation in case you are a work environment. If youopt-in to share your identity and location and allowing this data to besent to the ZuluNumber website, many more possibilities are enabled asoutlined below. For instance, you can visit your personal ZuluNumber webpage at a later time to see which ZuluNumbers you have scanned and whereyou were and when you scanned them. If they are your ZuluNumbers, youcan update your ZuluNumber information and also see who has scanned yourZuluNumbers. ZuluNumbers can also be stored on RFID chips, andattachments can be added to your cell phone (or at some point they mighteven become an embedded feature of cell phones) to eliminate the need tophysically scan the barcode or QR_Code. This enables an entirely new setof applications, outlined below.

ZuluNumber General Implementations

In another example, ZuluNumbers can be used of advertise on all pagesfor revenue. Monetize everything and track profitability. Set up siteswith CC, bill, or credit monthly. Create new currency called ZuluPointsthat you can buy, sell or earn (to avoid being a bank). Buy with money,earn by capturing and sharing RFID ZuluNumber GeoLocation data, get paidby converting ZuluPoints into money or buying special deals (like whatDiscover Card does with earned Discover Points). Use ZuluPoints to payfor Customer Support calls. Publish maps (like Verizon's Red/Bluecoverage maps) to show “Dead Spots” or “Hot Spots” where no recent RFIDZuluNumber data was collected. Go to those places to earn the mostZuluPoints. Can set up the ZuluApp to tell you whenever you havecollected enough data to earn another ZuluPoint. ZuluApp tells you whenyou have located an object that has been registered as lost or stolenand carries a reward. “ZooooluNumba—You are near a w-a-l-l-e-t that hasbeen lost and which carries a F-i-f-t-y dollar reward. Would you like meto help you find it?”. You get the reward, we get 30%. Mark both public,friends, and private areas of ZuluNumber information. Partner withDelicious Library to organize your home inventory. Spawn cottageindustries (ala eBay)—Aggregators—Buy, store, group like objects, sellsets for more (e.g. 3 plates+9 plates=1 dozen set). Combinators—Buy,store, pair items, sell for more (e.g. #4, #6, #8 Phillips screwdrivers=a set). ZuluNumber Jewelry—ZuluNumber charms in gold or silver.ZuluNumber for Postal Delivery automation. RFID ZuluNumbers for lifttickets or for Trathlons/10Ks—to get your splits and times. Use QRBarcodes for ZuluNumbers to embed more information in them and toimprove reading times and resiliency to damage. Set up alerts so thatwhen a ZuluNumber stops reporting, the owner is alerted that it isdamaged or stolen. Arrange to have it replaced for ZuluPoint fee. UseZuluNumbers for ZuluNumbers, Inc. asset tags!

ZuluNumber Pricing

Commercial: 0.05

Non-Profit: 0.01+0.01/1000 scans

Personal Use: 0.02+Unlimited Education 0.01+Unlimited Research:0.01+Unlimited

Extra cost for geotracking.Limit Voice to 5 seconds, 0.01 per additional 10 secondsSell Geo info upon your approval to earn ZuluPoints

ZuluNumber Voice Annotation

This could be a fun and potentially viral first way to promoteZuluNumbers. ZuluNumbers have voice annotations associated with them.For example, your own voice (if you use a phone, you just talk into it),or text-to-speech, or music, or an actual advertisement. The ZuluNumbercan specify to play the sound annotation as the default action to takeupon being scanned. Users can configure to allow/disallow/prefer soundannotation (to avoid embarrassing situations, e.g. making sounds at ameeting) (especially when used in conjunction with RFID ZuluNumbers whenyou might not be able to control when you actually detect or read theZuluNumber). Practical applications: ZuluNumbers on Real Estate signs,to describe the home generally. Use it within homes at open houses todescribe individual rooms. Use it in museums to describe paintings orsculptures. Use it at restaurants to describe meals. Use it outside ofrestaurants to describe the fare and the ambiance. Use it in magazinesor newspapers to voice annotate ads—and once you scan it, it's added toyour “Scanned ZuluNumber” page on your ZuluNumber site—where you canfind out more, or get a coupon—and in addition, the vendor knows howmany, who, and where from the ad was read or you had expressed interestin their product. Use it to advertise that this ZuluNumber is for sale.Use it on Vanity ZuluNumbers (e.g. ZEifelTower000000, ZGoldenGateBridge)to say whatever you want. Put it on TV or YouTube ads. Put it ongreeting cards with your own message. Create ZuluNumber Facebook pagesto publish who scanned it and when. The possibilities are virtuallyendless. Maybe for the magazine ads, charge the owner of the ZuluNumberfor each scan since transmitting voice or even video annotation couldprove to be quite costly, both in bandwidth for the transmission butalso in storage. Might need to limit the size or limit the number ofdownloads to the pre-purchased amount. Use it for sweepstakes—The 100thscanner gets a free iPad or whatever.

ZuluNumber GeoLocation

In still another example, a system can use ZuluNumbers to track locationof objects (and/or people). You could calculate distance traveled,velocity (max and average), elevation climbed and descended (like howGarmin does it for your workouts). For instance, you can put an RFIDZuluNumber on your mountain bike, carry your cell phone with you, andthen when you go to the ZuluNumber web page for that ZuluNumber, it cantell you the stats. It can aggregate the data and tell you how faryou've ridden your bike in a week, a month, a year, or since you'veowned your bike. To track your running, just put a ZuluNumber RFID onyour running shoes. You can also opt-in to have this data be shared withcompanies like Groupon who would love to know where you are, when and onwhat days of the week in order to fine tune Groupon deals. This latterapplication would aggregate your RFID ZuluNumber data feed, using yourphone home information to track your time/location rather than to trackthe time/location of the object itself.

LWHWB Catalog

Cataloging common items by their Length, Width, Height, Weight andBarcode data. Basically, once these 5 characteristics are collected, avast majority of commonly occurring items in our daily lives can beuniquely identified. First, the Barcode, if available, can uniquelyidentify the item by looking it up in the generally available UPC(http://www.upcdatabase.com/itemform.asp) Or ISBN (http://isbndb.com/)databases. If a standard barcode is not available or isobscured/damaged, then Length, Width, Height and Weight can be used as ahash into a global catalog to narrow the guess down to one or only a fewdifferent potential items. LWHWB cataloging is another key component tosome other ideas (below). LWHWB data is associated with the ZuluNumberfor that specific object.

HIS/HERS

Home Inventory System/Home Excess Reduction System—Through the use ofsimple machinery and eventually robotics, common household/businessitems are organized and cataloged. Items are placed in common 10 gallontubs, and items are scanned for Barcode or ZuluNumber, and if found,then they are identified. Failing that, the items have their Length,Width, Height and Weight measured and they are digitally photographedfrom 3 sides (during Length, Width and Height measurements) and the useris presented with a list of potential items that this item could be.Additionally, a video can be made of the object while it is beingmanipulated and stored with the object's ZuluNumber. Once selected, theitem is provided with a ZuluNumber that will permanently identify thisitem in the future, simplifying future inventories. The user ispresented with some questions they can answer, like is this new or used,is it valuable memorabilia, how often might it need to be accessed, etc.This information can be used in other ideas (below). When you want tofind something, all you need to do is look to your HIS/HERS database (itcould be very similar to how iTunes organizes your music today, onlythis is for items instead of music). It can either tell you exactly inwhich bin it is located and you can “check it out” (e.g. tell the systemyou are using it) and go get it. And then remember to “check it back in”and put it back in the same place when you are done. See “Z-Spot” forautomated ways to get the item delivered to you.

Online Video Robotics—3D Item Video Viewing

The video of the object being manipulated in the HIS/HERS system couldbe used on eBay, Amazon, or wherever items (particularly used items) arebought and sold, and played back to allow the user to view the object.However, the user might want to view the object from different angles inreal time. Since HIS/HERS has a robot that can manipulate an item totake photos and video of it, why not allow that robot be controlled by aremote user and have the item be captured on video real time? A usercould “reserve” to have an item viewed at some point in time in thefuture (say 10 minutes) which provides enough time for the item to bebrought from inventory into a viewing robot. The end user can thenmanipulate and view the object live. Alternately, if the object wasalready previously viewed and manipulated, that video (or YouTube) ofthe past viewing can be played back instantaneously (without areservation), since what one person would want to do to manipulate andview the object is probably similar to what the next person would want.All the images and videos of an object are stored with the object'sZuluNumber. The owner of the object itself could request to “haveanother look” at the object they have in inventory without having tophysically retrieve it, which is particularly useful if the object isstored remotely.

You can virtually “always take a look at what you've got”.

Z-Spot

A place where you can put your stuff and they just “go away” (but youcan always get them back when you want them). It works with the HIS/HERSsystem (above) only it is a special spot (the Z-Spot) where you canplace the object. It gets drawn away (with robotics, conveyor belts orother physical transport). The item is scanned and measured for LWHWB.If it is new, it goes through the same steps as in HIS/HERS above. Youcan also use the “Z-Spot” to request that the item be brought to you.When you look something up that you'd like, and you don't want tophysically go to that storage bin, you can request that the item beretrieved for you. This automates the “check in/check out” process. Thebenefit (beyond not having to physically retrieve the item) is that nowthe HIS/HERS system can track just how frequently you use certain items.Items that are rarely used can be put into further back, sloweraccessed, bulk storage (where perhaps many items would be stored in onebin). More frequently used items could be put into smaller containers(one item per container), like an “item cache” for quick and frequentaccess. Think of it like a memory storage system where often used datais stored in RAM cache, less frequently used files are stored on disk,and archived items are placed on tape, only it is for objects and notdata. Here would be a typical use scenario. You come home and you putyour wallet, keys and badge on the Z-Spot. They go away, but are placedin short term, high frequency, high access storage. You ask for themback and they reappear almost instantaneously. You could even have itprogrammed to have them appear at 8 AM each weekday morning to greet youas you are about to leave to work. Other items less frequently used(e.g. screwdrivers) could be stored in medium term storage, that mighttake a few minutes to retrieve. You could even specify a set of toolsrequired for a particular job (or it could remember which tools you usedfor a particular job) and all those tools could be retrieved as a set(think of it like a playlist in iTunes). Finally, with all this usagedata, the system can now suggest to you excess items that you have whichit could either rent to friends (or anyone) or sell on eBay for you. Itwould look up the average selling price and then give you 60% of thatvalue, and it would just “go away” and you'd get the money. Another wayto use HIS/HERS is to identify the total value of all these items (bylooking up their average selling price on eBay) and for cataloging itemsfor insurance purposes (in the case of a fire—to determine replacementvalue).

HIS/HERS keeps track of what you use and how often. It can suggest whenyou have something that you don't use and offer to sell it on eBay. Itcan find duplicates (e.g. you have 6 Phillips head screw drivers—sinceyou could never find them before, you kept buying them). Now that you'reorganized, it can suggest that the excess inventory be sold on eBay.

Friends can use their trusted networks (like Facebook or LinkedIn) andshare with friends what they have. If you need something but don't haveit, you can see who you know who does have it. Or friends of friends whohave it, etc. Once you determine where the item is, you can ask toborrow it. Maybe for free, maybe buy it, maybe rent it for a small fee.

People could virtually put all kinds of things that they don't use intothe system and then instead of having inventory sitting there doingnothing, those items could simply migrate around to wherever they areneeded and generate a revenue stream by renting them to people.

You can organize your things any way you want: alphabetically, by usagefrequency, by type (e.g. tools, books, etc.), or in fact by any of thecharacteristics stored about that item either entered by the user orfrom a database of characteristics compiled about that object. In thecase where people might physically go to the bins to get and put backitems (e.g. homes without a Z-Spot), the system can be programmed toperiodically run through all the inventory to identify what have madetheir way into the bins, got put into the wrong bin, or which were notyet returned, and update the inventory database accordingly. This canoccur slowly at night by some pre-determined schedule or once the systemreasonably might believe that the inventory data has gotten stale.

There are also variations which use RFID to identify the correct bin.These would be special passive RFID tags that would be placed on binsand would have a ZuluNumber associated with them. There are already handheld units which play a game of “hotter, cooler” with beeps which helpyou locate the correct bin. See MicroRFID below.

RFID ZuluNumbers can be used another way as well. If it becameworthwhile for GPS Cell Phones to have low cost RFID readers in them (orif inexpensive RFID readers could be produced, like the Square CreditCard reader that fits into the iPhone's microphone port), then theycould virtually always be able to tell what RFID ZuluNumber item theyare near, and where those RFID ZuluNumber items are located. To make itworthwhile, people would get paid for this data. Each unique RFIDZuluNumber identification could be worth 0.0001 to ZuluNumbers, Inc.ZuluNumbers could pay 0.00007 per identification (ZuluNumbers makes 30%by arbitrage). Hence, for every 130 items you identify their location,you get a penny. You might encounter 130 or even 260 unique items in aday, earning you 1-2 cents a day, or 30-60 cents a month. You don't haveto do anything to earn this, just carry your RFID enabled ZuluNumberphone with you. A lower cost alternative is to not use RFID but insteadto simply have a bar code reader in your phone. The net result is thesame, only you need to bar code read any ZuluNumber you happen toencounter in a day. Obviously, you can earn more with RFID, but thereprobably won't be as many RFID ZuluNumbers in circulation since theystill cost about 0.25 to make them—which is prohibitive for most of theitems they might identify.

ZuluNumbers can have the added benefit of locating items you have lost,or to identify the whereabouts of an item which you have ZuluNumberlabeled. Say for instance you ZuluNumber labeled your digital camera.Your camera could be found by a good soul and be ZuluNumber scanned. Youwould be charged a finder's fee for the return of your camera, say $30,and ZuluNumber gets a 30% share of that finders fee, or $9. That's oneway in which ZuluNumbers can make the money it needs to pay people forthe bar code ZuluNumber information they scan in or the RFID ZuluNumbersthey encounter in their daily lives.

ZuluNumbers also have ownership and data associated with them. EachZuluNumber has data associated with them which are always available touser through a web browser. The data can be read by anyone (unless it isspecified as private), and can be modified only by the owner. The datais XML and it specifies the owner, what the item is, or anything elseyou might want to put into that data. If it's a part of someone'sHIS/HERS system, it might specify the rental cost and availability.

ZuluNumbers cost money to own. They cost about 0.01 per year perZuluNumber. But people may be willing to pay this if it enables HIS/HERSand the whole idea of renting your items, or to have your items go tofriends or even strangers. It helps keep track globally of your uniqueitem.

ZuluNumbers could have a secondary market, just like Web URLs today (akaGoDaddy). Since they are Alphanumeric, they can form names likeZChrisZuleeg01234, or any one of a number of names, trademarks,marketing slogans, etc. There would even be ones with your SSN, likeZSocSecN123456789. These Vanity ZuluNumbers can be bought and soldthrough the ZuluNumber.com website. You can request vanity ZuluNumbersand buy them at a higher rate, say 0.05 and 0.05 per year. You can tryto sell them by any marketing scheme you'd like (eBay?). Wheneverownership is transferred, ZuluNumber.com gets 30% of the transactionfee. Some Vanity ZuluNumbers may even go for 10s or 100s of dollars! Youcan request blocks of “non-vanity” ZuluNumbers for you own home use, orthey will be generated for your use. Some might look ugly(Z5Hd8EmFsdj5garY8), but that's fine if all they'll do is be scannedautomatically to identify the item. ZuluNumber.com will probably reservea large number of ZuluNumbers that can be sold on the secondary market.SSNs might need to be reserved and provided to their rightful owners ata low enough cost. ZuluNumbers may even be phone numbers that coulddrive traffic to a business. ZuluNumbers are a very simple idea that canhave many benefits. All ZuluNumber.com strives to provide is a serviceto manage the ZuluNumbers and to deliver the “value” (e.g. the dataassociated with them) and people figure out what to do with them to makethem useful for them. For instance, items bought and sold a garage salecould have ZuluNumbers on them. The ZuluNumber virtually comes with theitem, helping identify and track it. When you buy the item, you get theZuluNumber. You now register yourself as the new owner of that item(since it's now put into your HIS/HERS system) and you now need to paythe 0.01 per year for that item's ZuluNumber. If you don't want to, thenthe ZuluNumber is de-activated and rendered useless, but it is put onthe “retired ZuluNumber” list so as not to be re-used and confused withanother real, paid for ZuluNumber.

Another use of ZuluNumbers is warrantees. Your ZuluNumber identifieditem can be used in your warrantee information with the manufacturer ofthe item. Once your ZuluNumber is populated with all the characteristicsabout the object, all you need to do to validate your warrantee is toshare your ZuluNumber with the manufacturer, and you don't need to fillout cumbersome warrantee forms. Plus, the warrantee can remain with theobject once it's sold, since the warrantee is part of the ZuluNumber forthat object.

Mass Inventory Management

Once enough items are known through ZuluNumbers, mass storage andinventory locations could be set up with mass automation where itemscould live and be managed by the system. This system could also be putinto service for things like Disaster Relief. For instance, what ifthere were an earthquake in Mexico and they were in dire need ofchildren's clothing? People who are storing children's clothes can becontacted and asked if they would like to donate them to DisasterRelief. When they respond affirmatively, the clothing begins to workit's way to where it can help for the humanitarian cause. And theprovider of the clothing can get a Tax Deductible Receipt for thereplacement value of that clothing (using average selling price on eBay)to determine the value. In fact, the whole ZuluNumber system could beused in general for people to more easily donate goods and receivelegitimate Tax Deductible Receipts.

Organize Your Stuff

ZuluNumber label the things you own with a pre-printed ZuluNumber orprint one out for it in real time. Store pictures, video, audioannotation and other characteristics of the object in its ZuluNumber.Keep, organize, sell, donate, recycle or destroy it virtually.

DigiStore

Franchise of stores to digitize, ZuluNumber label, organize, store,appraise, sell, buy, donate, auction, recycle, dispose or rent yourthings. Bring in your 10-gallon bin of stuff, go shopping while yourthings are sorted, categorized, cleaned and get ZuluNumbers attached tothem, and then return it to you when you're done shopping, along with aURL for you to view all your items online.

1800GOTVALUE?

A play on the 1800GOTJUNK company—only this time, instead of junk, youcan bring a 10 gallon tub of valuable objects to a store (or have thempicked up) and brought to a HIMS/HERS robot (only more industrialstrength) and have all your items cataloged, put online, or a CDprovided for you when you pick them up. Alternatively, you can justleave the items with the 1800GOTVALUE store, pay a little in storage,and basically have the items be put up for rent or for sale. Items canbe rented to friends, friends of friends, etc. or anyone, for a fee.

ZuluNumber Storage

Before the HIS/HERS systems exist ubiquitously, and when they are stillpotentially expensive, a reasonable first step would be to install themat Self Storage facilities. Entire storage units could be run throughthe system and people could be shown online what they have in storage.Items could then be sold/rented/retrieved remotely. And the objects canbe viewed and manipulated in real time using the Online Video Roboticsfeature.

Sell Object

When at garage sale, video/photo/audio annotation accompanies it throughits ZuluNumber. Also works for donations and internationally. Getvideo/audio snippet with the item when you purchase it. ZuluNumbers gets30% of the ZuluNumber transfer price.

ZuluForce

ZuluNumbers App Exchange for Salesforce—synchronize your ZuluNumber infowith Salesforce. SF=People. ZuluForce=People, Places, Things.

ZuluNumber Slogan, Jingle and Gimmicks

We Give Things Lives or We Give Things Voice. Jingle—Z0000luNumba—Makeit with voice and sound. Make it catchy and distinguishable. Make itmore famous than AOL's “You've Got Mail”. Use skywriters to putZuluNumbers in the sky. ZuluNumbers on the North Pole with blocks of iceor a in a wheat field or even on the moon! ZuluNumber on a billboard on101 to advertise. Put ZuluNumbers on dollar bills (likehttp://wheresgeorge.com) that contain links to Where's Georgeinformation. Short ZuluNumber ads on radio: We ID All or We IDEverything. Use ZuluNumbers and cell phones for Performance Art(BarArt)—a palette of ZuluNumbers with a dancer/musician and cell phoneslinked to A/V system to produce musical pieces.

MicroRFID

In your home, place 3 RFID reader/transmitters in each room to be ableto more accurately triangulate RFID location. More accurate than GPSlocation. Can actually track XY and Z (e.g. height as well asleft-right, front-back). Your cell phone can now have sounds to help youlocate the RFID you are looking for. Faster—your closer XY. Higher orlower pitch if you are too high or too low. Fast Perfect C and you're onit. Could also just have one in each room, and not have them be able toread through a wall, so at least you know you are in the correct room.Or, put really low powered ones right on the doorway between rooms whereRFID ZuluNumber tagged items live so you can track when the object hasleft the room (and hence has been used, and when it comes back again tosignal you are done using it, or if it never does, that it's stillsomewhere that it shouldn't be and hasn't been put back yet).

LifeCasting—Virtual TelePresence

Wearable TelePresence—JustMeTV. iPad with GoCam video camera (or justuse the new iPad 2 with built-in camera), Battery backup (perhaps withSolar Panel for remote locations), Printer (to print ZuluNumbers), SkypeVoIP (for real time communication), and WiFi (or satellite connection tothe Internet for remote locations). The LifeCaster travels to locations(such as Thailand, Africa or Europe) and walks through local markets,souvenir shops, art stores, or any shops where local goods are sold atlocal prices. The entire experience is telecast in real time back toLifeCaster's home team who manages the data feed. When the LifeCasterencounters an object of interest for sale (for instance, a Persian rugor a Crystal Vase), he manipulates the object, describes it, andtelecasts it back to his home team. The home team manages the datafeeds, promotes the object for sale, posts it on eBay in real-time,fills in the text description of it and other data about it. Once aminimum bid or minimum price has been established, the LifeCasterengages the local shop keeper who says how much the object costs. If theminimum bid is suitably above the local price, the LifeCaster purchasesit at the local price, prints and attaches a ZuluNumber to it forlogistics, shipping and tracking. Back home, the bidding can continuefor up to a week, and an even better profit can be made, though sincethe minimum bid has already been established to be sufficient to make aprofit, the minimum profit is already guaranteed. The LifeCaster mayengage the assistance a local interpreter or guide to help find the beststores and to negotiate with the shop keeper in the case where theminimum bid is less than the initial local price. They may also travelwith an assistant to pay for the object, help carry the objectspurchased, and to assist with packing and shipping the items purchased.The purchased objects could be aggregated and shipped in bulk to savemoney, and since they are all marked with unique ZuluNumbers, once theyarrived back in the States, they could be re-shipped to get eachindividual object to their final destination. This could all be donewith an iPad running a LifeCasting App and could be carried by collegekids to defray the cost of their travels. People back home could see theworld through their eyes. The LifeCaster (and his team) gets 10% of theprofit, the buyer pays the shipping and any export taxes, and LifeCast(the company that runs the service) retains the difference.

RAOK.com

Random Acts Of Kindness. When a LifeCaster is in between stores, theywill undoubtedly encounter beggars or people in need. The LifeCastertelecasts his or her plea. This RAOK telecast goes back to home officeand the video feed is redirected to proper viewing site and audience.Any donations made from an end user gets routed and paid directly to thebeggar in real time. The TeleCaster and team gets 10%, LifeCast gets20%, the beggar gets 70%. The entire experience is captured in aZuluNumber for future reference.

DimeForAPhoneCall

Using the LifeCast App, people could pay 10 c to talk through you totalk to someone, e.g. to ask a question or to console them. Like a“Penny for your thought”. When the LifeCaster is traveling about andencountering people, someone they see may strike a chord with someonewho is watching the live video feed and they will want to talk to themor give them suggestions. They can push a button on their browser,signaling that they would like to pay to talk to them through you. UsingSkype Voice or Video in real-time, that remote user could talk to theperson the LifeCaster has encountered, offering suggestions or advice.The entire experience is captured in a ZuluNumber for future reference.

StreamExperience—ZuluExperience

The LifeCast App can capture video at major events, e.g. Times Square onNew Years Eve. A ZuluNumber is attached to the video clip to identifyit. The time and location are captured with the video or images. At alater time, you can view that video or images online by viewing thatZuluNumber's web page. The experience can be download to your computer,or posted on YouTube or Facebook. The experience is always identified byits ZuluNumber, so if you make it public, anyone can view it. Or if itis categorized for Friends and Family, then only they can view it.People could even just go on nature hikes, walk in forests, in parks oron the beach, or even climb up Half Dome and those videos can be viewedby others, perhaps for a small fee that can be retained by theLifeCaster (with 30$ retained by LifeCast).

MakeMeDolt

Using the LifeCast App, when the LifeCaster is in a foreign restaurantand is displaying some of the unusual local fare (e.g. fried insects inBurma), they can be dared to eat something they are videocasting, or toget them to do something. People can bid how much they are willing topay them to eat or do something. Their bids are aggregated, and once theamount is sufficient, and once the LifeCaster does it, their bids arecashed in. The LifeCaster gets 70% of the amount, LifeCast retains 30%.The entire experience is given a ZuluNumber and the video associatedwith it for future viewing.

NoFriendsNoMore

Use the LifeCast App to link up lonely people to enjoy time together. Oreven to play games with each other, like scrabble or bridge. The entireexperience is captured in a ZuluNumber for future reference.

Local Mobile Shopper—YourSherpa.com

In a final example, a system can use the LifeCaster App locally ratherthan international, only do it for garage sales, estate sales, localstore sales, or even shopping at Safeway or Local Farmer's Markets.Local teenagers could go run errands for people who aren't mobile or whodon't have the time, and the entire experience can be managed with realtime video. Moms could buy fresh local produce at the farmers marketeven though they are stuck at their kids soccer games, by tuning in tothe Local Mobile Shopper who is LifeCasting the local farmer's market.And they can get exactly the tomatoes or cucumbers they want by beingable to interact with the Local Mobile Shopper in real time. The entireexperience is captured in a ZuluNumber for future reference.

One embodiment of Zulu Numbers includes transporting objects using ZuluSpice:

Part II

Transporting Objects Using Zulu Spice

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to object transport, andmore specifically, to routing for a cooperative transfer of physicalobjects using a network.

PRIOR ART

Physical objects include commercial products, warehouse inventory,personal items, and the like. Currently, individuals and businessestransport physical objects from one point to another, withoutconsideration of redundancy. However, rising gas prices, trafficdensity, and environmental concerns, among other circumstances, areincreased. First, individuals may not be familiar with other individualstraveling a similar or overlapping route. Second, even if friends aretraveling redundantly, they may be unaware of each other.

What is needed is to automatically route physical objects over nodes ofa network.

DESCRIPTION

The above-mentioned needs are met by a method, system and computerprogram product for routing of a cooperative transfer of physicalobjects over a network. An object can be physical or virtual. Forexample, a book can be handed-off from an Internet distributor (e.g.,Amazon) to social networking friends (e.g., from Facebook) for transportto a customer. In one variation, a transfer can leverage objectequivalency. More specifically, a first copy of a book can bedropped-off at a first node along the route, and in response, a secondcopy of a book can be picked-up at a second node along the route. Thefollowing detailed description is intended to provide exampleimplementations to one of ordinary skill in the art, and is not intendedto limit the invention to the explicit disclosure, as one or ordinaryskill in the art will understand that variations can be substituted thatare within the scope of the invention as described.

Objects can be physical or virtual. Physical objects include, forexample, commercial products, warehouse inventory, personal items,trees, pets, real estate, automobiles, mail, and the like. Virtualobjects include, for example, magazine advertisements, online objects,events, experiences, dates, emotions, and the like. An object can beidentified using, for example, a unique ZuluNumber.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating system 100 for routing for acooperative transfer of physical objects over a network, according to anembodiment of the present invention. The system 100 can implementmethods described in detail below.

In the embodiment shown, a central server manages object routing overthe network. An object headed for a destination node 1101 is dropped-offat an embankment node 110A. In between these nodes, a network ofintermediary nodes 110B-110H are interconnected to provide redundanttransport routes. The central server 130 communicates with all the nodes110A-I, or just the embankment and destination nodes 110A,I, using anetwork such as the Internet or a cellular network. A node can be, forexample, a mail box, a mail service such as UPS, Federal Express, theUSPS, a store front, a home, a business, and the like. The designationof embankment and destination for nodes is relative to a particulartravel route for an object and can be different for different routes.

Transport between the nodes can be accomplished using a variety ofmodes. Examples of transport modes includes mail, shipping, automobile,airplane, walking, bicycling, e-mail, data transport, and the like. Thetransport modes can be tracked in between nodes using, for example, acellular telephone having GPS capability. In one embodiment, routing iseffected by a reliability of a transport mode. In another embodiment, atrusted network of people or businesses, such as a Facebook friend or aLinkedIn contact, each contribute to the network. The nodes can includea computer or other processing device in communication with the centralserver.

FIG. 2A is a flow chart illustrating a method 200 for routing for acooperative transfer of physical objects over the network, according toan embodiment of the present invention. The method 200 can beimplemented in, for example, the central server of FIG. 1A.

At step 210, an object is transferred at an embankment node to atransport mode. A notification can be sent over a network to a centralserver. Additionally, metadata is also sent to identify the object,along with source and destination information. For example, a smartphone can scan a QR Code on an object when dropping-off. Other protocolsare possible.

At step 220, a route is determined over redundant links. The routing canbe affected by reliability of transport modes over links. Other routingfactors can include type of transport mode, length of travel, cargocapacity, other objects being carried, and history of timeliness, amongothers. Routing can be performed by a central server or locally atnodes. Links connect the intermediary nodes.

In one embodiment, a Zulu Number is associated with each object beingtransported. A code for an embankment node and a code for a destinationnode can be embedded in Zulu Number associated with the object.

At step 230, the object is transferred at the intermediary nodes fortransport over the links to a destination node. In one embodiment,transport over a link can be virtual. The transfer is processed usingitem equivalency. For example, a first copy of a book can be dropped-offat a first node, and a second copy of the book can be picked-up at asecond node.

Several more detailed applications are presented below. In someembodiments, these applications can be implemented using the generalarchitecture described above. In other embodiments, the architecture canbe varied as needed.

Additional Embodiments

In one embodiment, a system (e.g., ZuluSpice) for objects to be movedfrom one location to another for free or almost for free, as well as forobjects to be automatically stored or retrieved. E.g. Almost FreeShipping—A system where trust networks (e.g. social networkingaffinities) are leveraged in order for people to carry items for peoplethat they trust. It is an extension of the concept that if you saw yourneighbor walking to their car with a Blockbuster video in their hand,and you also had a Blockbuster video to return, you wouldn't feeluncomfortable asking them to return your video for you, and that theywouldn't be inconvenienced and would graciously comply. A modern dayanalogy to the Spice Trade Routes of the past where people and othercargo could travel along the Spice Trade Routes on ships already enroute. This can be extended to the point where items can travel from oneperson to the next along a trusted route for virtually free, sincepeople are already traveling that route. The “last mile” is people whoare in the ZuluSpice system might periodically have to carry a bin withthem to a bin drop-off point (like FedEx, USPS or DHL drop-off boxes).Bins in the ZuluSpice system are standard 10 gallon tubs with aZuluNumber RFID tag on them. ZuluSpice drop off points can be a PostalEtceteras, Fedexes, Post Offices, places of work, Starbucks, even streetcorners where USPS, UPS and FedEx Mailboxes currently reside. You areidentified by the fact you carry your cell phone and use the ZuluNumberApp. The system knows where your cell phone is and knows you areapproaching and accepts your bin. It knows where each item is destinedand then calculates where each item should next go on its route. Thedrop off box has a version of the HIMS/HERS system in it which scans,separates and reorganizes the units into subsequent bins.

ZuluSpice leverages the ZuluNumber system where people can have theircell phones tracked for ZuluSpice to collect data about their frequentlytraveled paths. ZuluSpice identifies who can carry the item along thenext segment of its path and notifies them that an item is ready forthem to carry, where it is located, and to which destination to bringit. For every item mile that you carry a ZuluSpice item, you get aZuluSpice Item-Mile credit. You collect credits and then you can usethese credits to “buy” the delivery of an item to be delivered to you.For instance, if you regularly travel from home to work and pass by adrop-off box nearby your home, and there's a drop-off box at work, andthe distance is 10 miles, then you might carry 10 items along this pathand get 100 ZuluSpice Item-Miles. Then you want to buy an item on eBaythat is 100 miles from you. You can have that delivered to the drop-offbox near your home For Free (well, you earned the “free” shipping ofthis item by carrying other people's items along the path you alreadytravel, so it was truly free for you—or at least, you would have paidfor the time and gas traveled anyway). If you are unwilling to carrypeople's items to earn your own ZuluSpice Item-Mile credits, they caninstead be purchased outright as well. They might cost 0.01 n Item-Mile.ZuluSpice charges you this amount to ship items using the ZuluSpicenetwork.

People who are willing to move other people's items can be paid for theitems they carry. For instance, a taxi driver who doesn't have any ridescould ask ZuluSpice if there is anything they can carry. It cancalculate a route where they can pick up and drop off the most items.They earn 0.007 an Item-Mile (ZuluSpice pockets the difference betweenwhat it charges people for a Item-Mile credit and what it pays peoplefor them). They can then use their time to pick up and drop off itemsand earn money carrying other people's stuff.

ZuluSpice may need to operate its own fleet to pick up and drop offitems that are taking too long to get to their end destination. Or forlong distance shipping, it might need to aggregate all the items in SanJose that need to get to LA and ship them in bulk using UPS or trucks.

ZuluSpice knows the frequency of travel of all people along the routeand can estimate how long it will take for the item to travel. Since theitems are always being dropped off and picked up in RFID bins and atlocations with HIMS/HERS, and people's cell phones are tracked, you canalways know where items are located. If at any time a person wants theitem to get there sooner, they can specify they would like it sooner andit can be packaged up, addressed, and a UPS or USPS truck can bedispatched for it to be picked up and sent with regular postal serviceand the cost would be passed on to the user.

ZuluSpice works because a lot of people will want to use it for free(moving items to and from locations where they are already traveling),and through that, and with the cost-charge arbitrage of 30%, the moreitems that are shipped, the more ZuluSpice makes. The incremental costto ZuluSpice for the free users is simply the cost of all thecalculations and logistics to allow them to transport the items(calculate routes, etc.).

Imagine if ZuluSpice drop-off boxes were at gas stations. People couldbe offered a discount on their gas in exchange for carrying a bin or twoof items with them as they went along their path. If someone were topick up 23 items in Los Banos as they gassed up and were about to driveto LA, they would be earning 0.007*23 or 16.1c a mile traveled. If gasis $4 a gallon and your car gets 25 miles per gallon, that translates to16 cents of gas burned per mile. So basically, if they carried theseitems along a path they were already travelling, their gas wouldessentially be free! Imagine a gas station sign that read: Gas:$4.00/gallon (non ZuluSpice) or Free (with ZuluSpice) how many peoplewould sign up! The sign could vary with number of items available totransport. For instance, if only 11 items were available to Northboundtraffic, yet 23 items were available for Southbound traffic, the signwould read: Gas—$4.00 (non ZuluSpice). $2.00 (ZuluSpice Northbound) Free(ZuluSpice Southbound). ZuluSpice could in theory even pay for the gasright there for them, if it had the guarantee that the items would betraveling the full tanks' worth of gas distance. And remember, for everyitem moved, ZuluSpice gets a 30% slice of the transaction, since iteither costs ZuluSpice nothing (if it's a ZuluSpice Item-Mile credit) orZuluSpice got 0.01 for each Item-Mile moved.

Imagine that people could specify how to ship their items on eBay withZuluSpice and it would be free (with ZuluSpice credits) (and ZuluSpicecould estimate how long it would take, say 8 days—and some peoplewouldn't mind waiting, considering it's “free”), or pay for it withZuluSpice Item-Miles (say it would have to move 20 miles, that wouldcost only 0.20). Or UPS—$3.95. Or in the worst case, if it's taking toolong to get there, and the user decided they want it sooner than the 8days, they could convert it to UPS and only end up having to pay for the$3.95 cost anyway. So they end up either paying the same as they wouldalready anyway, or perhaps as little as 1/20th of that cost (or less ifthey have ZuluSpice credits), so long as they can wait.

Item Fax

Once ZuluSpice and ZuluNumbers are widely used, a new service can beoffered using the notion of “item equivalency”. Basically, if you livedin New York and bought a brand new iPod that is located in LA, whyshould that iPod be transported across the country to you when there'san identical one in New Jersey that can be delivered within hours. Thisservice uses “item equivalency” to basically “fax” an item to you. Itworks using ZuluSpice for the delivery (since ZuluSpice not onlydelivers items but it also has a large inventory where it knows aboutequivalencies) and ZuluNumbers (since each item can be uniquelyidentified and match equivalencies). You buy the iPod in LA and it showsup in hours! Fantastic! In the background and behind the scenes, theperson/store that delivered the iPod from New Jersey is back-filled withthe iPod from LA. But the end user is pleasantly surprised by theamazingly quick delivery.

As will be understood by those familiar with the art, the invention maybe embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit oressential characteristics thereof. Likewise, the particular naming anddivision of the portions, modules, agents, managers, components,functions, procedures, actions, layers, features, attributes,methodologies and other aspects are not mandatory or significant, andthe mechanisms that implement the invention or its features may havedifferent names, divisions and/or formats.

Accordingly, the disclosure of the present invention is intended to beillustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the invention.

1. A method for object identification and enhancement, comprising:receiving a zulu number, discerned from a QR code, from a client;accessing a database to retrieve enhanced information associated withthe zulu number and store information from the client; and send theenhanced information to the client for display or execution.